Mbale Mudslide Update

Frank Armstrong writes...

"Information on the developing situation in Mbale is reaching us from various sources.

The latest information from the BBC http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/Africa/8556669.stm describes the scale of the response that will be needed in the Mount Elgon region in Mbale.

Peter Mawdit, a member of the 2 St James and the Love Africa Steering Group has provided this report on the current situation

Edith Wakumire, the leader of UWCM in Mbale sent an email last night explaining she will visit the areas effected today (Thursday) and provide a further update

We have assured our partners in Uganda of our continued prayers for their work, the people affected and the aid effort, and again, that Love Africa will try to be ready to respond to other needs they identify and feel we could support

Your prayers at this time are deeply appreciated"

Letter From ACET in Mbale Mudslide region

Frank,

Good to hear from you and pray for a safe journey back to the UK.

The situation continues to be grim. It has been very difficult to access the area and they are still using rudimentary tools to dig up those are now believed to be dead. The News paper have also painted a picture of despair.

We have finally been in contact with Stephen who had moved deeper into the communities to support who his people. He is fine and is yet to ascertain how the church family is. People are still scattered and not sure whether their relatives are dead or displaced.

Achilles was able to go to the general area abut 13km from the community that was had hit and limited by the roads. It is boda bodas that can get closer.

The prayer concerns are

• That the weather holds and the limited access is not cut off completely
• God comforts those who lost their loved ones and shows them brighter days.
• That disease outbreaks do not occur seeing that the wet conditions have accelerated decomposition of the dead and everything finally ends up in the Manafwa river which also serves Mbale town.
• The Church will find wisdom and courage as it supports those that have lost all the people that they ever knew (relatives).
• Pray for the children who were not able to get home and survived but have lost all their family
• The politicians have also used the opportunity to mudsling which could derail the government on focusing on helping the communities
• The rains are still expected to come down in torrents ans so the communities are traumatised by the whole situation with exoduses of communities to new areas- pray for comfort
• We are thankful to God for those that survived and especially those we know and work with-Stephen and those that are involved with Edith's ministry

The people who survived lost everything they ever owned. Displaced people's camps are now the new phenomenon. This will definitely have its own challenges since it requires skills for handling emergencies.

Achilles has started collecting clothes s for the people who are wearing the only asset that they now posses when they survived death.

Achilles sent me some pictures of a truckful of coffins driving through a heavy down pour in the village. He says these people had an opportunity to give their loved ones a dignified burial!! It has been emotional draining to imagine what is going on. Have had many thought s attaching it

Paul

Mudslides In Mabale

Frank Armstrong; Chair of the Love Africa Steering group writes...

News reached the 2 St James from ACET Uganda on Thursday 3rd March of the disaster in Mbale. Love Africa has two major projects in the region, one with ACET Uganda who run community mobilisation projects and the second with Uganda Womens Concern Ministry led by Edith Wakamere who run a number of Church mobilisation projects.

Views of the region recently taken by a St James team

We spoke to Paul Kabunga of ACET Uganda who briefed us on the situation as follows,

Following heavy rains there were mud slides in the Bududa region on the slopes of Mt Elgon These mud slides covered many villages. The death toll has been estimated at over 300 people, though the numbers may never be known, families have been separated and many people have lost their homes and possessions. Reports from local papers are attached

The reporting of the disaster has been low key in the UK with a couple of items on the BBC web site http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8545005.stm

One oF Edith Wakumire's Community Mobilisation teams in the Mt Elgon region

Many people from the 2 St James have visited the projects in Mbale with ACET and UWCM and have travelled up to the mountain villages, e.g. Bulago.

Paul has reported that none of the communities that Love Africa has been involved with have been directly affected and he will keep us up to date with news and requests for support.


The family of the two St James will clearly want to support the victims of the Mbale disaster – what can we do?

1. Pray for the victims – we have asked Paul to provide specific prayer request but meanwhile we should pray for the needs of the victims and the aid workers.

On the 3rd March the Psalm reading from the Bible in a Year programme was Psalm 46, verses 1-6 which can provide a focus for our prayers

1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
4There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
7The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
8Come and see the works of the LORD, the desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire.
10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
11The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress

2. Participate – we have asked Paul and Edith to suggest to Love Africa any specific financial support we can offer, or other practical support and we are waiting for a response. E.g. Many people have lost all their homes and possessions and still more people will want to move from their villages which are in areas at risk of further mudslides

3. Give – If you want to give directly to Tearfund to help them support ACET as they assist in the relief work you can send a cheque to them c/o Tim Raby made out to Tearfund. Their address is Tearfund 100 Church Road Teddington TW11 8QE their website iswww.tearfund.org

Our hearts go out to these people who are generous and joyous in their faith

Rwandan Surprises Martin Williams

As part of my month away break in East Africa I found myself in Rwanda. I met with the head of Tearfund Rwanda - Emmanuel - who kindly took me out to supper. As we spopke about the healing of his country still in process after the 1994 Genocides he told me about the spread of HIV/AIDS in Rwanda and especially in Burundi. He began to tell me all about the PEP (Participatory Evaluation Programme) that uses biblical material to help churches become the catalysts of transfoprmation and chaneg for AIDS stricken communities. He told me how powerful it is. He told me that in Burundi now that so much international aid is cut of due to corrupt government the churches running PEP was the only hope the country had of stifling the spread of HIV/AIDS.

The Rwanda Genocide Memorial at Nyamata near Kigali. The rebels were there slaughtering Tutsis for 3 days!

What he did not know until I told him later was that St James was helping Tearfund to fund the development through Love Africa and roll-out of PEP which originated in a PAG church in Soroti on Uganda. It was a huge affirmation and encouragement to hear how much faith and hope he had in the PEP prgramme. PEP really is an extraordinary move of God; and we are involved in supporting it.

John Monaghan reflects on a highlight of the GAT trip: Leading Worship

As vain as it sounds - a worship leader's highlight being the worship – I was truly honoured to be swept along with a tide of some of the most exuberant, expressive and heart felt corporate worship that I have ever encountered. It was most certainly ticking the all boxes of loving and praising God with ‘heart, soul, mind and strength (Luke 12)’.

One of my concerns going on this trip was that I would not have any time to exercise. However, little did we realise that corporate sung worship in Uganda involves more than just moving one’s jaw bone.

Picture the scene – it’s Sunday morning 10.30am. The GAT team arrive at a church - the congregation are already in full swing and we’re expected…

It’s Pastor Paul’s church and as his honoured guests we have been given pride of place at the front with our very own table decorated with flowers (I was hoping to sneak in the back unnoticed).

Just before we prepare to sit at the table, I am cornered (metaphorically) by Pastor Paul and kindly requested to return to the van to get my guitar and I graciously walk back to the van to carry said instrument back into the church (no time for band rehearsals here!).

We join with the rest of the congregation and are led by the worship group in singing and praise and adoration. I’m also intrigued by the ‘tag-team’ worship that’s going on… the musicians are to the left of the stage, the ‘worship-leaders’ are all female singers, beautifully dressed along the centre of the stage. I stress the fact that there were ‘worship-leaders’ because they would take it in turns to lead a few songs each and then pass the baton (the ‘microphone’) and continue in seamless worship. No music, no sheets, no projectors and yet 100% participation!

The songs we sing are beautifully simple and meaningfully repetitive, in part because it’s much easier to remember the words that way, but also I think they speak straight from the heart. One song comes to mind ‘Things (are) already better when the Lord is on the throne…’. I get a sense as we sing these simple words that people are reminding themselves that they are a part of God’s salvation story and growing in the living hope that they have in their personal faith with Jesus. ‘Things (are) already better…’ , Jesus is making a difference to these people in their everyday lives and they are joining together on a Sunday to say thank you. I sense their warm welcome, I already feel a connection with these people, I want to call them my brothers and sisters. There is a strong feeling of deep fellowship here. I sense I’m in the midst of an ‘Acts 2’ community whose members depend on each other for physical, emotional and spiritual health. I feel moved by God’s love in the room and suddenly I look down and my feet are moving to the tune of Michael Jackson’s ‘Blame it on the boogie’ (I just can’t control my feet…). I don’t want this to end.

The moment comes and I’m asked to come and lead the church in a few songs. No time to tune up. A member of the congregation comes up and acts as my mic-stand. My mind is racing to remember the few Luganda songs (their native dialect) that I learned from a CD given to me by Pastor Paul previously. Quick silent prayer. I glance at the exits of the church in case I’m mobbed by angry parishioners. I mouth over to the musicians (looking at me in a kind and sympathetic way) that I’m playing in the key of ‘G’.

Off we go!

I’ve never led worship in another language. First line of first verse over and I see the expressions of the congregations faces light up – ‘jackpot’! - the place erupts and I’m feeling so glad that I drove my wife half-mad by listening to these Luganda songs over and over in our kitchen. I start to appreciate the benefits of having a moving mic-stand (I think his name was Andrew) as I’m able to dance and feel a little like King David dancing before the Lord (although more modestly dressed than a single linen ephod). We all enjoy a taste of the royal banquet that is yet to come. More of that back home Lord!

Gill Headington writes about her Highlights

One of my highlights was connecting with the people that we met, especially the women. Di and I spent a lot of time with several lovely ladies at the Alpha training and they were all very warm gracious people  who are very faithful in spite of their difficult lives.

I was quite apprehensive on the visits to the “Center for Evangelism” (CFE) because I had expected to see much suffering.  We met many women who were widowed with four or five children, and many of them were HIV positive.

They had been helped by CFE in many ways, and what I saw were empowered, confident women who were now able to feed their children and who were part of a close community, and part of God’s family.

Global Alpha Training Visit to Iganga in January 2010

Who Went?

Di Rowlandson, John Monaghan, Simon Dust ( Vicar from St Andrews, High Wycombe ) Gill Headington, Tony Robinson and Paul Sillett.

Why did we go?

1. To help train seventy six church leaders from the region of Iganga on how to run an Alpha course. This was a challenge as they had not yet attended an Alpha course.
2. To visit some of the Love Africa projects from the Centre for Evangelism in Iganga that some of these leaders are working with.

What did we do?

We were hosted by Pastor Paul Lubale the leader of the Centre for Evangelism who organised the training conference with the Alpha Uganda team. He visited St James in November when he came to our three Alpha courses to understand better how Alpha works.

It was a joy to worship in his church and the congregation loved the songs John had learnt to sing in their language Lucanda.

The three day conference was attended by church leaders from the Centre for Evangelism and many different denominations in the region of Iganga. It covered practical subjects such as What is Alpha ? How to lead a small group, How to give the talks on Alpha but also five demonstration sessions from the Alpha course so that the delegates could experience Alpha. Each of the team helped to coach a small group of delegates over the conference on how to facilitate the small groups. It was encouraging to see them grow in confidence with this new skill. Towards the end of the conference the Alpha Uganda team helped the delegates begin to think through an action plan for how they were going to start running Alpha in their area. They are running a follow up training event in March to continue to develop this.

We pray that God will continue to water the seeds that were sown and trust that they will continue to bear fruit.

We spent two days visiting some of the projects supported by Love Africa in this area. It was encouraging to hear some of the ways that this help is making a difference. We heard from widows who had been trained to grow their own food and given seeds so that now they had enough food for their communities and could begin to sell some of their produce and start putting money in the bank.

It was moving to hear from young men in the child-headed household projects who had looked after their younger siblings from the age of twelve and were now in secondary education and hoping to become teachers.  We thank God for the privilege of working in partnership with these brothers and sisters in Christ from the Centre for Evangelism to help bring the Good News of Jesus to these communities in Iganga.

The Gillespie family’s Uganda trip report

Gordon Gillespie describes the family’s recent trip to Uganda…

Why did we go?

“An immensely humbling and challenging experience”

“hugely inspiring people”

“incredible welcomes and hospitality”

“amazing Christian faith and love in action”

“loving and reaching the poorest of the poor”

“hope and joy amidst huge desperation”

…just a few quotes from Sue Gillespie’s previous trips to Rwanda and Uganda.

It sounded like an adventure of a lifetime and the Gillespie boys (all three) did not want to miss out.

We had a lot of prayer and debate about whether spending money on such a journey was appropriate. It sounds trite but we wanted to make a difference in some way and not just be tourists or get in the way. We remembered how Patrick Dixon, the head of ACET, had spoken so clearly to St James about weighing up the cost of flights versus the amount of direct aid that could be bought with that same money.

Sue and I went along to a meeting back in February with other St James families who were contemplating a trip. We thought we might join a group going out and suddenly found we were the only ones going. We later found out that our good friends, the Allens, were planning to go and were persuaded that visiting and supporting some of the projects would be an encouragement to those projects. So, in February, we took the plunge and booked the flights while we prayed that other arrangements would fall into place.

What did we do?

Our trip started in Kiswa School, which has a link with the Church primary school in Gerrards Cross. Kiswa is in a very run down area of Kampala,

We had an amazingly warm welcome. The whole school stopped for our visit. They sang and danced for us and gave us Coca Cola and samosas that they could barely afford. I embarrassed my sons by demonstrating a lack of keepy upy football skills in front of the whole school. We danced and played with the children all afternoon. A truly unforgettable experience. The picture shows us bringing T-shirts from our CofE school and footballs from St James FC to the teachers.

We then went on to Iganga, one of the poorest areas in Uganda, to visit some children we sponsor, who are also part of the Love Africa Centre for Evangelism (CFE) project. The CFE project is headed by Pastor Paul, who works with a number of different partners to show Christ’s love to the poorest of the poor through the 72 churches he leads in the area. Pastor Paul kindly, and unexpectedly, joined us in visiting the homes of a number of sponsored children that he and his team care for. It was wonderful to see our sons, Ewan and Rhys, playing with the children and making friendships and experiencing at first hand the great work that Pastor Paul and his team do in supporting a very poor and vulnerable community.

Our next visit was to meet the legendary Edith Wakumire. This lovely lady runs another Love Africa supported project – Uganda Women’s Concern Ministry. She has developed a network of churches and volunteers who go out and help the most needy and vulnerable.

One of the people that UWCM helps is Aida. Her husband died of AIDS and she too is infected. Aida lives in a tiny fragile mud hut with her five children. She has a small area of scorched earth, about the same area as the St James crèche, where she has to grow crops to feed her family. As this is nowhere near sufficient, she works as a labourer for others when she is well enough. Aida rarely has enough food and relies on the Edith’s volunteers for help. Apart from meeting Aida, one other lasting memory of this visit was when Gordon was asked to address the Ugandan Women's Concern conference, despite admitting to a very poor understanding of women let alone their concerns, they seemed to gain immense encouragement from the thought that other people many miles away were praying for and supporting the hard work of these amazingly loving volunteers. They thanked St James so much for their support.

Our final visit was to the Tumaini Orphanage. On a dark clammy night on a red dirt track through the middle of the workers’ shanty town inside several fences and traffic barriers to mark the boundary of the sprawling Kakira sugar plantation, we suddenly saw the welcome beaming smile of Tim Allen looking out of another dusty Toyota minibus! That was the start of a memorable three days with Pastor Nicholas and his dedicated team who are running a church and  orphanage in very challenging conditions. We had a great time leading some PromiseLand and other children's activities with children from the orphanage, the local church and the surrounding area. Our most memorable moment was probably when we were surprisingly introduced as children's work experts to a group of 80 very expectant children. With all our props and ideas already used up that morning or packed away in our guest house ready for the following day, we had four hours of improvised fun and games!

What did we take away?     

Here are just some of the many things we took away from the experience:

• New friendships and relationships that we hope to build and grow over many years
• Huge admiration for the dedication and faithfulness of the Ugandan churches and volunteers who work so tirelessly and cheerfully with so little
• Realisation that our support and prayers are just as valuable to the projects and children we support as any money
• Lessons on hospitality!
• A personal challenge to think how we could re-apply what we had seen to be Christ’s hands and feet to the most needy and vulnerable around us.
• A resolution never again follow in the footsteps of the Drewetts – who had done a brilliant job and set a very high standard of PromiseLand leading the year before!

A St James Family reflect on their recent trip to Uganda

As 2009 was Janet’s 50^th birthday we wanted to do something special as a family to mark the year. We’d been fascinated by the stories brought back from previous Love Africa trips. In particular the idea that the visits were very much a two-way exchange was intriguing. The chance to come alongside fellow Christians in the Love Africa projects putting their faith into action seemed too good an opportunity to miss. When we heard about the Drewett family going to Uganda we were particularly inspired to give our children the opportunity to see life from a different perspective; outside of the cosy Gerrards Cross bubble.

The plan for our trip involved visiting the Tumaine orphanage at Kakira; Mubarak (our sponsored child in Mawagala); Kiswa school in Kampala which is twinned with the Gerrards Cross CE School; and a number of ACET/Tearfund/Love Africa projects in the North of Uganda. We also participated in a build project with the Watoto church. In all, a very full, exhausting but fantastic three week schedule.

The highlights of the trip were undoubtedly the children we met; they were so full of life, joy, fun and music. The whole family was captivated. Spending a few days with the Gillespie family at Tumaine running a PromiseLand style activity day was just wonderful. All of our family have been involved in PromiseLand in various ways, so for us to come together as a family to share that experience with the children at Tumaine was deeply satisfying and moving.

We also felt very moved and privileged to experience the love and affection that is felt towards the whole of the St James congregation for the support that the Love Africa mission has given and the difference it has made. To witness first hand the encouragement this gives to the community at Tumaine was a real blessing. The welcome that the children sang for us on our arrival was so beautiful it took our breath away.

We were amazed by Watoto and the scale of their work in Uganda. With a congregation of more than 20,000, their mission to look after widows and orphans is on an unprecedented scale. It is incredible to see what God can do if we will only trust in Him. For us and our children to come alongside Christians making this sort of a difference in their community was awe inspiring. So too though were the ACET projects in war torn Gulu, where small communities are

Gulu, Uganda

putting lives back together. These projects are at the other end of the scale from Watoto; a few small, poor churches working together for the first time to look after the poorest of the poor in their own community. A real inspiration again for making Christianity relevant to our own community.

Prior to the trip our teenage daughters frequently asked, “Why don’t we just send the money, do we really have to go to Africa?” (In truth a couple of weeks in a nice villa with a pool would have been more their idea of a good holiday!)

Before we went that was a difficult question to answer convincingly. After our return, it was no longer an issue. To connect face to face was encouraging for the people we met and a privilege for us. A step that allowed God to work deeper in the hearts of both sides. To steal a lovely phrase from Sue Gillespie: “we came back with empty suitcases but very full hearts”. All in all it was a wonderful way to mark Janet’s birthday.

Love Africa Skills Sharing Trip – September 2009

In mid-September three members of St James went to Uganda for a week for the first Love Africa skills sharing trip.

Jacky Hughes, Nigel Young, and Andrew Laughland spent most of the week in the ACET Uganda head office, in Kampala, meeting with staff members and discussing aims and objectives, vision and strategy.

The purpose of the trip was two-fold: to use skills and experience that the visiting team could offer (in coaching and organisation, in finance and in information and communication technology) and to find out from the ACET team what skills they and the HIV projects need which members of St James could share in future trips.

Andrew takes up the story…

I had visited Uganda before in 2008 and had had the opportunity, at short notice, to do a day’s IT work and training in the ACET office. This time I was keen to plan ahead and I was able to take tools and equipment out with me and also to pre-arrange meetings with some of ACET’s technology providers with a view to improving service and reducing costs.

We spent much of the time in a meeting room filling whiteboards with information and ideas but we also had individual sessions with various members of the ACET team. Additionally I was able to service and upgrade a number of the computers in the office.

One of the exciting things for me was going as part of a multi-disciplinary team so, for example, when Nigel shared his findings on their frustrations with aspects of the finance systems, I was able to locate and install some accounting software which should help overcome those frustrations. If only one of us had been there that probably would not have happened.

We did take a little time out from the office and one of the  highlights for me was visiting the Kiswa school in the suburbs of Kampala. This school is partnered with our own Gerrards Cross C of E School and it was very special to be able to take out gifts of pens, paints and paper for them, and to build on the relationship with them. Visits to schools in Uganda usually involve much handshaking and singing and Kiswa school was no exception.

I think what has struck me the most this trip is the powerful difference cost savings and efficiency improvements in the office make for ACET and the HIV projects. I have worked for many years in business using IT to make improvements but it is a privilege in this relationship with ACET Uganda to help direct more of the money and resources to projects which change, and save, people’s lives.